MaxPreps takes a deeper dive into the players and teams making the news with a look at
Ethen Knox, and 100-point scoring teams Andale (Kan.) and Freedom (Woodbridge, Va.).
With his record-breaking sixth 400-yard game of the season Ethen Knox of
Oil City (Pa.) came within a few yards of becoming just the second high school football player to rush for over 3,000 yards in eight games.
Knox has 2,957 yards after eight games and likely would have been much higher if not for a 97-yard outing in a loss to Meadville. Knox is averaging 370 yards per game. Take out the Meadville game and he's averaging 408 yards per game.
The 2,957 yards is believed to be the second-highest total all-time in eight games, behind only John Giannantonio of Netcong (N.J.), who had over 3,000 yards in eight games, but his exact total is unknown. His reported total of 4,756 yards for the 1950 season, as listed in the National Federation of High Schools record book, has been determined to be "total offense," not just rushing yards.
With 43 yards, Knox will be over 3,000 yards in nine games. Only three other players are known to be over 3,000 yards during that span. Tyler Ebell of Ventura (Calif.) had 3,102 yards in nine games in 2000, David Dotson of Valley View (Moreno Valley, Calif.) had 3,069 yards in 1991 and Ken Hall of Sugar Land (Texas) is believed to have over 3,000 yards based on his 337-yard average during the 1953 season.
Oil City running back Ethen Knox should top 3,000 yards this week, a feat that places him among some of the game's all-time leaders. (Photo: Eric Elliott)
Andale (Kan.) became the first Kansas team in 89 years to score over 100 points with a 108-0 win over Nickerson. While 108 points is certainly a lot of points in the 21st century, it doesn't come close to being the highest-scoring game in Kansas history, over even one of the top 44 highest scoring games in state history.
Haven holds the state, and national record, with 256 points in a win over Sylvia in 1927. A total of 43 other Kansas teams have scored over 108 points, almost all of them prior to 1927, with six teams tied with 108-0 wins.
A total of 73 Kansas teams have scored 100 or more points in a game, according to luckyshow.org. The state is believed to have the third-highest total of 100-point games, behind only Oklahoma and Texas which each have over 100.
The 108 points was the most points scored in the nation since 2005 when Bloomington defeated Jurupa Valley 108-20. The 108-point margin of victory was the most since 1994 when Olney (Ill.) defeated Newton (Ill.), 135-0.
Freedom (Woodbridge, Va.) surpassed Andale's high total one week later when it defeated Charles J. Colgan, 112-16. Freedom's point total is the highest since Woodrow Wilson (Beckley, W.Va.) defeated Mt. View (Welch, W.Va.), 116-28 in 1997.
The 112 points is the fifth-highest total in Virginia history with Westside (Smithfield, Va.) leading the way with a 124-7 win in 1967. Westside was an all-black school prior to integration in Virginia and it also scored 110 points in 1968. Horace Gatewood threw five touchdown passes in the 1967 game and his backup Leroy Denson threw six touchdown passes.
Gatewood would go on to lead the nation in touchdown passes in 1967 with 41, setting a national record in the process. Denson led the nation the following year with 43 touchdown passes, breaking Gatewood's national record.
